Visiting Dejima

Growing up in the Netherlands I learned a lot about Dejima and its history at school, so when I heard I could go to Nagasaki I was delighted. Wednesday afternoon I got the chance to take a look at the old trading post. The sun was shining so bright it burnt my skin, but it was the perfect lighting to take photos. After purchasing my ticket a friendly man gave me a short explanation about the area, he can speak fluent English as well, which is very helpful if you want to ask any questions.

Dejima was an artificial island built in 1636 by order of the Tokugawa Shogunate. After the Portuguese were expelled from Japan in fear for further growth of the Christian faith among the Japanese population, the Dutch were forced to resettle their trading post in Dejima. Between 1641 and 1859 the island was the only connection with the outside world and thus played an important role in the development of Japan as it was the centre where Western knowledge got shared. There’s a running project called The Dejima Restoration Project that is working on a reconstruction to restore the island as it looked in the early 19th century. Until that finishes there is still lots to view! There are various exhibitions on the trade and cultural exchanges at Dejima Museum of History, Dejima Theatre that projects a 12-minute film about the island, the Head Clerk’s Quarters, the Museum Annex, the Director’s Residence, several warehouses and much more!

I’m glad I took the time to pay a visit to Dejima, learning about my country’s shared history with Japan’s and being at the exact spot where it all happened felt somewhat surreal.

Dejima is located a short 5-minute walk down the road from Casa Noda. The entrance fee is ￥510 but if you use the Discount Card provided by us at your check-in it will only cost you￥260!

Sunny memories of Glover Garden

On my first day off from work I decided to visit Glover Garden, a beautiful park where the oldest Western-style house in Japan can be found. The house belonged to Thomas B. Glover, a Scottish merchant who contributed a great deal to the modernisation of Japan. As the house is built on Minamiyamate hillside it has the most stunning view of Nagasaki’s harbour – I therefore highly recommend visiting the park on a day when the sky is clear.

I left Casa Noda around 11 a.m. and walked towards the garden via the Dutch Slope. As the walk to the Glover Garden is uphill and the weather that day was very hot, I decided to enter the garden via the Glover Sky Road. The Glover Sky Road is a lift that can be found close to Ishibashi tram station. It will bring you to the top of the hill in front of one of Glover Garden’s entrances.

The first thing I saw when I entered the park was a large pond, where small children were feeding a group of colourful koi-fish. As I slowly walked down the garden I couldn’t help but stop to take lots of photos of the view. Inside the park you can find lots of beautiful plants, flowers and observation spots overlooking the harbour. You are allowed to enter most of the rooms inside the houses which are furnished with vintage furniture that suit the era the houses were built in.

Around lunch-time I went inside the tea house to enjoy a refreshing cup of coffee. If you would like to sit outside there is a terrace in front of the tea house where you can buy some refreshments if needed.

Glover house is the most unique building of all, but it compliments the area very well and gives the scenery as a whole a lovely, romantic atmosphere.

How to get to Glover Garden from Casa Noda:

-If you want to take the tram you can take Line 1 from Goto-machi to Tsukimachi, transfer to line 5 and exit at either Ouratenshudo-shita or Ishibashi station. From there you can either walk or take the Glover Sky Road up to the park.

-Walking from Casa Noda will take about 40 minutes.

The entrance fee is ¥610, but you will only have to pay ¥510 if you use the discount card provided by Casa Noda at your check-in.

Maike’s first day at CasaNoda & visit to Huis ten Bosch

A couple of days ago I arrived in Nagasaki after a few busy days in Tokyo. I instantly felt relaxed when I noticed the beautiful nature and summer weather. When the bus dropped me off at the station nearest to the hostel, a friendly woman saw me looking around and offered to help me find my destination. She walked me all the way to the front door whilst telling me what places I should visit in Nagasaki. Where I live this rarely happens, so I immediately felt welcome. Even though it was rather busy at Casa Noda the staff was very kind and helpful and at night there was even a small gathering with good food and drinks. Within the first few hours of my stay here I have already become friends with a lot of people. I can’t wait to meet everyone else!

Yesterday I went to Huis ten Bosch together with another guest from Casa Noda whom I met the night before. Huis ten Bosch is a Dutch-themed amusement park near Sasebo, about 1 hr 15 minutes by train from Nagasaki city. The park is filled with replicas of old buildings from cities such as Amsterdam and Utrecht (including the canals, flowers and windmills) and has a lot of fun attractions and activities for everyone to do.

I highly recommend visiting the park if you have some some spare time, the train-ride there alone is worth the trip. If the weather is good you will be able to see a gorgeous scenery of Omura Bay! You can easily take a train from JR Nagasaki-station, the JR seaside liner will bring you directly in front of the park.

Today was my first day at work at Casa Noda, Ayaka-san and Yuri-san were so kind to explain the work to me today. Thank you both so much for your help!

I’m looking forward to work here for another couple of weeks and to explore Nagasaki a bit more! =)

In this Okunchi period, we can hear some melodies from many places in Nagasaki.

It makes us very happy and merry^^

In every year, some certain old areas perform their traditional dance. They have different assigned dance. In this year, Imakago-machi, Aburaya-machi, Motofuna-machi, Ue-machi, Kajiya-machi, Chicago-machi will preform their dance.

Their performance was very powerful and their breath mach during their performances.

It will make you moved!!

During Okunchi Festival, Suwa Shrine is packed by hundreds of people!!